


Puzzle Pieces (of Pictures Half Remembered)

by Jory0994



Series: Puzzles [1]
Category: Final Fantasy XIV
Genre: AU, Cameos, Female Warrior of Light (Final Fantasy XIV), Gen, Miqo'te Warrior of Light (Final Fantasy XIV), Past Life Memories, Reincarnation, Spoilers, Thalassaphobia, Very AU, and it's side effects, lots of cameos
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2019-10-12
Updated: 2019-10-12
Packaged: 2020-12-13 23:01:31
Rating: Mature
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,007
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/21005591
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Jory0994/pseuds/Jory0994
Summary: The Ascians are very sure their people would agree with them that they are doing the right thing, just as soon as they're all put back together.But what if they remember too soon?Their people are half of what they used to be by now.They don't remember everything, or even a lot, but it's enough to start looking for others like them....and find them.





	Puzzle Pieces (of Pictures Half Remembered)

_ \--stared as the Spire started to crumple, gleaming glass in all the colors of a rainbow raining down even as the foundations buckled. The sound was beyond description, somewhere between a scream of rage and sorrow. She dod- _   
  
“It’s an amazing story Miss Amiticia.” Hemlock’s head jerked up at the woman’s voice.   
  


“Wh- Oh, thank you Miss Boggins.” She said with a flush.   
  


“Call me Bellapu, dear.” The Lalafell said with a bright smile. “If I’m going to be your agent then you should call me by name.”   
  


“My-you mean you’re going to publish it?” She squeaked in shock, ears perking up and tail lashing. 

“Am I going to publish it? Of course I’m going to publish it!” Bellapu said excitedly, arms waving in excitement. “This is the most original story I’ve seen in decades young lady! Even if it stops abruptly-”   
  


“I’m halfway through the sequel.” She blurts, clutching her notebook to her chest. Bellapu’s excitement was reflected in her aura, letting Hemlock know she was telling the truth about how much she liked it.

  
“Well, you write quickly.” The publishing agent said with a blink and a grin.

~   
  
Hemlock was still in shock an hour later as she ducked into the shade of a food stall. Ul’dah was  _ hot _ this time of year, and so different from her native Limsa. Well she supposed it was always hot, being a desert. Slumping onto a stool she flipped through her notebook, pausing on a sketch of a masked man in a grey robe, the red of his mask stark against the otherwise monochrome page. 

The half of his face that wasn’t covered was blank. He was set against a railing, with an alien skyline in the distance, peace and contentment written in his stance.   
_ Who are you? _ , she wonders wistfully.  _ Why can’t I draw your face? _

Hemlock accepted the juice and meat-bun she had ordered form the waiter with a smile and a tip, then blinked when her Linkshell sounded. Grabbing her things and slipping into an alley after double checking for people she tapped it.   
“What’s up squirt?” She asked, sipping her orange juice.   
  


“How’d you know it was me?” Her youngest sister asked with a pout.   
  


“You’re the only one not in school this time of day, Iris.” Hemlock said dryly to the six year old.   
Iris huffed, and Hemlock vaguely heard a door slam.   
  


“Are you on the balcony without supervision again?” She asked in her best impression of their mother’s disappointed voice.   
  


“Nope!” Iris chirped. “I just got off of it.”    
  


Hemlock sighed. “What do you want hellspawn? I have a meeting about an apartment soon.”   
  


“Are you coming home for my birthday?” Hemlock froze, a feeling of  _ pressure/crushing/can’tbreathcan’tbreath _ threatening to overwhelm her.   
  


“Daddy said not to ask you but I know you prefer bluntness.” Her too smart for her own good sister’s voice broke through her thoughts.   
  


“I-” Hemlock tried to speak and reign in her racing heart at the same time.   
  


“You’re not.” Iris said matter of fact. “It’s okay.”   
  


“What? Iris no it’s not, I-”   
  


“Have a mortal fear of drowning that you won’t admit to?” Iris’s voice is too knowing for a six year old.   
  


“Iris” Hemlock hissed, pained. Fuck the Empathy that ran in her mother’s line. All of them understood too much of the world too soon. Ever since that Sahagin raid where she almost Drowned, she hadn’t been able to stand being near large bodies of water, not even as much as she had before, and that hadn’t been much. It’s why her parents hadn’t argued too hard about her leaving home at sixteen. She hadn’t been back to Pirate City in over a year.   
  


“I didn’t get it at first, you know.” Iris said quietly. “You’ve always hated the water, but after last summer it got worse. I didn’t know what had made it worse since you’d always been afraid.”   
  


“...and you do now?” Hemlock asked, fighting to keep the apprehension from her voice. She wished that she was speaking to her face to face, she was always better at comforting people when she could feel their emotions. It made it hard to talk to non empaths though. No matter how much she hated the effects, she’ll never stop being grateful that her entire family had the gift, baring her father.    
  


“Taka’s dead.” Iris sniffed, holding back tears.   
  


“What?!” She demanded, startling a cat. Takahira was their Au Ra neighbor’s son, who babysat Iris and the twins on weekends, her only son left after-   
  


“Kobolds?” She asked pained, remembering Ravus’s rant-letter about the barely older boy being allowed to join the Yellowjackets when he wasn’t, because he was born a week too late for the class cut off.   
  


“Yeah.” Iris was crying now. “Mommy told me about how something bad happening again after you healed can hurt you worse because of patterns.”   
  


“Repeat trauma.” Hemlock said bitterly.   
  


“Yeah that.”   
  


“How is Mrs Hiwa doing?” Hemlock prompted. Iris would snap out of her tears if she had something to  _ do _ , but being six made that difficult sometimes.   
  


“She’s locked in one of Mommy’s rooms at the clinic.” Iris sniffed. “She tried to hurt herself.”    
She sighed, closing her eyes and thumping it on the wall she had leaned against. She reached up and tugged on one of her braids, thinking.   
  


“I should come-”   
  


“No.” Iris said firmly, and Hemlock could picture her baby sister with her hands on her hips, frowning up at her.   
  


“Iris.”   
  


“No, I just wanted to talk and we talked.” She said with a stomp Hemlock could almost see.   
  


“....if you’re sure.” Hemlock said, damning her weakness to the seven hells.   
  


“I want you to call more often and send me something awesome from your new home.” Iris said, blunt as a hammer. “And you should call Ravvy later.”    
  


“I will.” Hemlock promised. “On all of it. You want some Lalafell sized plate armor, or pugilist gloves?”   
  
Hemlock barely made it to the meeting with the landlord on time.   
  
~A month later~   
  
“What’s an adventurer want an apartment for anyway?” The cranky old Lalafell asks with a huff as she followed him up the stairs. “Don’t you lot spend all your time flitting from place to place like the wind?”   
  
“Well, I have business interests in Ul’dah, Mr Nupuja.” She said calmly, his crankiness wasn’t directed at her personally, so she ignored it. “I’ll be in and out, yes, but I promise to have all payments on time.”   
  


“You’d better.” He harrumphed, then pointed down the hall at the Hyur woman walking towards them.   
  


“Warde, this is your new roommate, show her around. There’s a tankard down at the pub calling my name.” He barked before toddering off.   
  
“....Is he always so grumpy?” Hemlock asked curiously. Warde had sighed and then smiled politely at her.  _ Her boobs are  _ ** _nice_ ** , she thought absently. _ Bad Hemlock, no hitting on the roommate.  _

“Well, yes.” Warde admitted, drawing Hemlock out of her thoughts. “Though he nor F’lhaminn told me I was going to be getting a roommate.” She added with reserve.    
  
“I won’t be here too often, Warde.” Hemlock said with half a smile, looking closer. Was Warde responding to undercurrents too? 

“Hemlock Amiticia, adventure.” She said, offering her hand.   
  


“Minfilia Warde.” She replied reaching out to take it. “I don’t mind, truly. A warn-”   
  
She was cut off as they touched hands, a noiseless bell ringing as the world fell away.   


~flash~  
  
_A_ _girl/teenager/woman drifted through a life of magic and plenty. She gave and gave and gave to others, and still her life was lonely. She was sweet and kind, and every person who saw her looked through her instead of at her._

_ She did not let it stop her from doing what she thought was right, and in the end the Tempered killed her for it. _ __   
__   
__ ~ flash~   
  
Hemlock stumbled back until she hit the wall, staring at Minfilia with wide eyes, the fur on her ears and tail puffed out.   
  
“ **What wa** -” She stumbled to a stop as her mouth tried to form the wrong language, the one from the waking dream. She twitched when Minfilia slumped down the wall, clenching her hands together as she drew her legs up. “That hasn’t happened in years. I thought my fits had passed.” Hemlock muttered, slumping down as well.   
  
“It’s called the Echo.” Minfilia said finally, realization dawning in her aura. “At least that’s what we call it. It’s not a fit, they’re memories. We think.”   
  


“We who?” Hemlock said dubiously.  _ Memories, really? _ Her hand went to her bag that her author’s copy was in. The city she had seen was the one from her dreams, where her boo was were set. _ Am-. _ She couldn’t remember.   
  


“My friend Thancred and I.” Minfilia replied, determinedly standing. “The same thing happened when I met him. Come on, we should talk in the apartment.”   
  
Hemlock hesitated when Minfilia offered her a hand up. “It shouldn’t happen again.” Minfilia said with a small smile,  _ projecting _ her aura. “It’s rare that it happens more than once for the same person.”    
She nodded slowly an accepted the hand up, tentatively pressing her own aura against Minfilia’s.

“Did...we see the same thing?” Hemlock murmured as she followed her into the living room, stopping to scoop up her bags.

“We saw each other if it was like the other times.” Minfilia replied, heading into the kitchen. “Do you want something to drink?”   
  


“Please, and..others? It’s not just this Thancred person and us?”

Minfilia doesn’t answer until she comes back to the living room and hands her a glass of juice.   
  


“Master Louisoix-”   
  


“The Sharlayan Conjurer?” Hemlock broke in, surprised.   
  


“Yes? Oh, you’re a Conjurer, I should have known you would have heard of him.” Minfilia laughs before continuing. “He has the memories too. He’s been looking for others like us, and finding us.” She grins. “I doubt he expected me to find one by accident!”   
  
She couldn’t resist smiling back, though her mind was still whirling.   
  


“Does...does he know what’s happening?” Minfilia’s face fell.   
  


“No. He’s got no  _ real _ idea. He thinks we might be some type of refugees from a collapsed world where people keep their memories through reincarnation, but that doesn’t explain why we can’t remember much, and…” She trails off, studying her glass. 

“We remember more when we meet others like us. I don’t know what you already remember, but you should be prepared for dreams tonight.”   
  


Hemlock shuddered. She already had terrible dreams, driving her to write them down to get enough peace to sleep.   
  


“I thought I was crazy.” Hemlock said quietly. “I used to ask why no one was really speaking, why-’”   
“-Their words don’t match their feelings, why can’t anyone hear what I’m saying-”   
“-I’m practically yelling, you just aren’t listening.”   
  
They both stared at each other for a moment, the sheer relief of having someone who understood almost causing Hemlock to collapse.   
  
“So there are others?” Hemlock asks, trying not to sound too hopeful. She’d never met anyone outside of her family that could hear all of what she was saying, and they didn’t Hear the same way. They didn’t have the dreams.   
  


“A few. Papalymo, Yda and her sister Lyse, I mentioned Thancred.” Minfilia sighed. 

“There are a few in Ishgard, but they’re busy with the Dragonsong War, so I’ve never met them. It’s...hard to find us, since the Echo only happens when we touch or on our own. None of us like to talk about it…..You weren’t the only one to think they were mad.” She admitted.   
  
Hemlock swallowed and drug her bag close, pulling out the fully illustrated copy of her book.   
“I might have made it both easier and harder.” She said, holding it out.    
  
On the cover was the city they had both seen, gleaming in thousands of colors in a sunrise, a group of four people slumped together laughing.   
  
_ City of Songs: A Beginning of an End. _ _   
_ _ By Ko Diafonón _


End file.
